Motor-car curtain.



E. E. LLOYD & J. Z. CURNUTT.

MOTOR CAR CURTAIN.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 17. 1916.

1,266,504. Patented May 14, 1918.

WITNESS W ATTORNEY door or the i FEE.

ELDON E. LLOYD AND JOHN Z. CURNUTT, OF MARYVILLE, MISSQURI.

MOTOR-CAR onar.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented May 14 3918.

Application filed March 17, 1916. Serial No. 84,848.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ELuoN E. LLOYD and JOHN Z. CU'RNUTT, citizens of the United States, residing at Maryville, in the county of Nodaway and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Motor-Car Curtains, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to motor car curtains and more especially to curtains for use above the doors of the car, our object being to produce a door curtain which will swing with the door when the latter is opened or closed so that one may enter or leave the car without striking his head upon the curtain.

Another object is to produce a curtain which can be conveniently opened to enable the car occupants to converse with a person outside without the necessity of opening the pushing or doubling of the curtain in an injurious manner. v

A still further object is to produce a cartain comprising a door member to swing with the door and an opening member in abutting relation with the swinging member when the latter is closed; said members at said abuttin edges having stiffening bars ada ted to he forced together to unite the mem ers, the stiffening bar of the door member being adapted to be readily withdrawn preliminary to the opening of the door curtain or of the door.

Another object is to produce a door curtain adapted when unfastened at its opening edge to fold back on a diagonal line extending from its lower opening edge to its upper edge at a point vertically above the hinged edge of the door.

With these objects in view. the invention consists in certain novel and peculiar features of construction and organization as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1, is a side elevation of a part of i a motor car equipped with a curtain embodying our invention.

Fig. 2. is a view showing the inner side of the car with the door curtain in open position.

Fig. 3, is a vertical section of the door at i the upper corner of its free edge and of bar adapted for swinging the stiii'euing a vertical positions distance fol-wand, from approximating forty five degrees when the curtain is opened, and regardless of whether the door is also opened or not.

Fig. 4, is a plan view of a portion of the body of the car with the curtain in the position shown by Fig. 2.

Fig. 5, is a vertical section showing a nonmovable curtain member and a door member secured together, said figure also showing a device for locking the two members against accidental disengagement.

In the said drawing, 1 indicates the car body, 2 one of the doors and 3 the opening for said door, the door being shown as hinged at the edge nearest the front of the car. 4 is the wind shield and 5 the top of the car.

6 indicates the rear curtain if the car is a runabout or a division curtain between the front and rear doors if the car is equipped with front and rear sets, which curtain is not affected by opening or closing movements of the doors. It may be buttoned or otherwise secured in place along its upper and lower edges. If it is a division curtain of the type suggested, it will be provided at its vertical edges with stiffening bars 7, one of which is shown. This bar is made by folding a piece of spring metal to produce the rib 8 to which the curtain is adapted to be secured in any suitable manner, and a' pair of inwardly bowed spring jaws 9, and said bar is located adjacent the rear or free edge of the door 2.

10 is one of the door curtains, adapted for connection in the usual or any customary manner with the opposite sides of the wind shield. At its rear or opening edge each door curtain is provided with a, stifiening bar 11 adapted to be used like a wedge between and be held by the jaws 9. The stiffening bar 1] is preferably produced by folding a strip of thin steet metal, the sides of this folded sheet engaging and being suitably secured to the rear edge of the curtain 10. Fitting in the lower end of the bar is the upper arm of an obtuse-angle shaped socket bar 12. The lower arm 13 of the socket bar engages a vertical socket 14 in the door, said socket flaring upwardly and downwardly to form a contracted throat portion 15. The socket is just wide enough to receive the socket bar so that the same is prevented in swinging in a plane parallel with the'side oi the car, from having any material lateral movement, mother words, the angle bar so fits the socket that it can swing to open the curtain as here inatter more particularly explained and yet remain. in close contact with the sides of the socket so as to avoid a chattering noise when the car is running.

When the curtain is closed, the arm 13 of the socket bar extends downwardly and forwardly with respect to the car, and when the curtain is open the arm 18 of the socket bar extends downwardly and rearwardly, the exact angle, however, in which the arm 13 of the socket bar extends is immaterial, except that when in any position it is limited its movement by one of the upper ends and the diagonally opposite lower end of the flaring ends of the socket, it being also apparent that the hinge movement of the bar occurs in the contracted or throat portion of the socket.

The curtain is adapted to fold inwardly on the line 16 extending from at or near the upper rear corner of the door to a point vertically above the hinge edge of the door, as in the plane/of said edge the curtain must fold or hinge along the dotted line 17 when the door is swung open. Forward oi the fold line 16 the curtain is adapted to reversely fold at 18 and between said fold lines 16 and 18 a transparent windowl9 of celluloid or the like is provided, another window 20 being located between the stiffening bar 11 and the fold line 18. The windows shown are provided to correspond with the spaces between the fold line 18 and the fold line 16 and stifiening bar 11 as by making the windows of this shape they are of maximum area. If desired the curtain between the fold lines 16 and 17 and in front of the latter may also be provided with windows or sight openings.

Any suitable means may be employed to make the connection between the stidening bars 7 and 11 reliable and air and watertight. The means shown for clamping the said members together so that they will not jolt apart is a pin 21 extending rotatably through member 11 and provided at its inner and outer ends with handles 22 and with wedge arms 23 to enter between bar 11 and the jaws 9 of member 7, it being noted that the inturned front ends 24: of said jaws will tend to prevent the wedge arms 23 from being accidentally withdrawn from between said jaws.

With the parts arranged as shown in Fig. 1, the car occupant desiring to speak with a person outside conveniently can do so by turning the inner handle 22 to withdraw the wedge arms 23 from between the bar 11 and the jaws it of member and then pushing on said handle away from abutting member, 9, this action effecting the withdrawal. of the sti aning bar Ill from between the jaws and permitting the curtain incense 2, the socket bar 12 in this action swinging from the position shown by dotted lines to the position shown by full lines in Fig. 3. W hen the curtain is in this position the door will open and close freely as the body of the curtain will fold readily on the dotted line 17 due to the fact that the socket bar has no movement transversely of the car it will remain parallel with and in proximity to the fold line 16 regardless of the movement of the door so that it will not fall inward relative to the door and thus interfere with the free passage to and from the car through the door opening. It is also obvious that when the door is opened and the curtain is in the folded position referred to full head room below the top of the car is provided and that there is no chance of a persons head striking the curtain with resultant injury either to the curtain or'to the persons head.

To close the curtain it is necessary simply to swing the stiffening bar upward and force it between the, jaws 9 in which position it may be locked by turning movement of the handle. It is obvious of course that the curtain can be opened from the outside as well as from the inside of the car.

From the above description it will be apparent that we have produced a motor car curtain possessing the features of advantage enumerated as desirable and we wish it to be understood that while we have illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of the invention, we reserve the right to make all changes falling within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

W e claim.

1. The combination with a motor car having a top and a hinged door, ofa curtain comprising a member extending from a fixed part of the car body to the top of the car and a door member over and adapted to swing with the door; said members being 'detachably secured together adjacent the free edge of the door when closed, and the door member at its opening edge, having"a permanent stiffening bar plvotally engaged with the door at the upper free corner thereof and capable of swinging only in a single plane which, when the door is closed, coincides with the rear edge of the first-named curtain member.

2. The combination with a motor car having a top and a hinged door, of a curtain comprising a member extending from a fixed part of the car body to the to of the car, and a door member over an swing with the door; said members being detachably secured together adjacent the free edge of the door when closed, and the adapted to j door member at its opening edge having a Flt) iecaeoa f and capable of swinging only in a single c hich, when the door is closed, coine. es with the rear edge of the first-named curtain member, said door member having a window in the part above a diagonal line extending from a point near the pivotal point of the curtain to the top of the car at a point vertically above the hinged edge of the door.

3, The combination with a motor car having a top and a hinged door of a curtain comprising a member extending from a fired part of the car body to the top of the car, and a door member over and adapted to swing with the door; said members being detachably secured together adjacent the free edge of the door when closed, and the cor member at its opening edge having a ivotal engagement with the door at the upper free corner thereof for movement toward andfrom the adjacent end of the other member and having windows in the part above a diagonal line extending from a point v near the pivotal point of the curtain to the top of the car at a point vertically above the hinged edge of the door, the windows being located at opposite sides of a central fold line extending radially upward from the pivotal point of said curtain.

a. The combination with a motor car having a top and a hinged door, of a curtain closing the space above the door and adapted for Swinging therewith; said curtain having a permanent stiilening bar at its free edge pivoted at its lower end to the door to swing with the curtain from a vertical position to a diagonal line extending from the up free corner of the door to the top vertica l above the hinged edge of the door.

5. The combination with a motor car having a top and a hinged door, of a curtain closing the space above the door and adapted for swinging therewith; said curtain having a stiii'ening bar at its free edge pivoted at its lower end to the door to swing from a vertical. position to a diagonal line extending from the upper free corner of the door to the top vertically above the hinged edge of the door, and having windows in the part above a diagonal line extending from a point near the pivotal point of the curtain to the top of the car at a point vertical above, the hinged edge of the door, the windows being located at opposite sides of a central fold line extending radially upward from the pivotal point of the curtain.

6. The combination in a motor car having a top, of a hinged door provided at the upper corner of its free edge with a socket having a throat and upwardly and downwardly flaring mouths, and a curtain extending between the side of the car and the top thereof and adapted to swing with the door;

said curtain at its free or opening edge having a stiffening bar terminating at its lower end in an arm engaging said socket and adapted to pivot therein to permit the portion of the curtain above a diagonal line extending from the pivotal point of the bar to the top at a point vertically above the hinged edge of the door to fold and overlap the portion of said curtain below said fold line.

In testimony whereof, we affix our signatures, in the presence of two witnesses.

ELDON E. LLOYD. JOHN Z. CURNUTT. Witnesses:

C. C. Conwm, R. SOUERS. 

